For the Love of Haley
by Jellico
Summary: Stand-alone sequel to "Brothers in Trouble". Nathan is willing to do just about anything to see Haley again ... or is he?
1. Great News for Nathan

Nathan leaned casually in the doorway and guzzled a bottle of Gatorade while he watched his parents drive off. He couldn't believe his mom had convinced his dad to take her "antiquing" and that his dad had even suggested a place they could start. They were obviously getting up there in age, no matter what they said to the contrary, and this totally proved it. With a smirk, Nathan set the Gatorade aside, then shut the door behind him and returned to the basketball court outside to shoot more hoops.

Lucas wasn't with him yet, but that was cool. It was Saturday after all; let him sleep in. Nathan could just pretend he had the house all to himself like he used to before Big Brother moved in and the 'rents were away; he could shoot and miss as many baskets as he wanted to without an audience nearby judging him from the sidelines. Of course, he wasn't actively _planning_ to miss any baskets, and so far this morning, he hadn't.

Every time he sank a rock he imagined he was an NBA player scoring in front of a hysterical home crowd, a crowd that had Haley in the stands cheering him on with her wedding ring back on her left finger. In all his fantasies, Haley's brown eyes were riveted exclusively on his, and her love for him was plain to see since she was right in his sightline, hollering his name. For sure Chris Keller was _not_ around, not in the stands, or in Tree Hill or anywhere in the state of North Carolina. Hell, he wasn't even in the United States of America. In Nathan's fantasies, that meddling jerkweed was destitute and talentless if he was anything at all, a never-been musician no one ever heard on the other side of the Atlantic. Or maybe he was never born. It didn't really matter to Nathan, so long as Haley never met him and hadn't run out on their fledgling marriage to pursue a music career with him.

For a while, Nathan practiced his mid-range shots while he tried to forget the last words he'd told Haley right here in Tree Hill that drove her to leave him. He couldn't, though, and now those shameful words kept repeating themselves louder in his mind, reinforcing the colossal mistake he'd made in giving the love of his life an ultimatum. Soon after on the court, Nathan began to fall short. It was inevitable, really. Whenever his mind dwelled on that night, his game suffered and his concentration tanked, forcing him to botch far more baskets than he made. Nathan watched his latest shot rebound off the rim, then hit the ground and bounce its way into the grass, but he didn't chase after it. He couldn't bring himself to care anymore. He stood where he was, breathing heavily, and looked at the ball without really seeing it, thinking one thought only.

God, he missed her.

He missed Haley James Scott.

He missed his wife.

Maybe he told his friends, when they asked, that their separation was for the best, and maybe it was true that in public he acted like it was no big deal, but that didn't mean he believed his lies deep down or that Haley wasn't often on his mind. She _was_ on his mind, especially this last month. Nearly every minute that Nathan was awake now and more often than not in his dreams, Haley was there, haunting him almost everywhere he went no matter what he was doing. He didn't know for sure why thoughts of her were plaguing him 24/7 out of the blue like this when they had been separated for nearly half a year at this point, but he was starting to have an idea that he hoped wasn't wrong.

Haley was coming back to him.

Okay maybe not today, and maybe not this month, or even the rest of this year, but she _was_ coming back, and she was coming back to see _him_.

Nathan had to believe it.

Suddenly driven to check his phone in case she had called him, Nathan abandoned the basketball court to head inside the house. He knew he was behaving irrationally – Haley hadn't called him since June right before final exams – but he didn't care. He took the stairs two at a time and made a beeline for the night-stand to the right of his bed where he usually kept his phone.

It wasn't there.

Nathan frowned and turned to his dresser to scan it quickly, but he didn't see his phone lying in plain sight, so he turned back to his bed and ripped the sheets aside.

Still nothing.

He checked his dresser a second time and looked more carefully this time in between the gazillion trophies, his keyring, two watches, and some loose change, but he wasn't going blind. His phone really wasn't anywhere on the surface. He dropped to his knees and studied the floor beneath his bed, but it wasn't there either, or in his backpack, or in the jeans he'd worn yesterday.

 _Where the hell was it?_

 _Was it in Luke's room maybe?_

The chances of that were actually pretty high, considering how much time he spent in his brother's room and vice versa, so Nathan strode across the hall and entered without knocking. Eight feet away, a bare-chested Lucas was asleep on his stomach with the sheets kicked off and one arm draped over the left side, but he didn't stir an inch as the door opened. Nathan spared his brother a glance, then inspected Luke's night-table first, followed by his floor, his dresser, his bookshelves and his desk.

Naturally, since Luke's desk was the last place Nathan looked, that was where he found his phone: right beside his brother's, hidden and forgotten beneath an open compendium on Greek mythology.

Cursing under his breath, Nathan snatched up the device and checked the logs first thing to see whose calls he had missed. There was one from Ashley at school, two more from her fellow cheerleaders, and a couple from Tim, but there were none from Haley and no text messages either.

Disgusted with himself, Nathan sat on his brother's desk top and put his phone back down, wondering why the hell he'd bothered to check it in the first place. Was he some kind of glutton for punishment, one of those lovesick losers who couldn't figure out when it was time to move on? Obviously, he must be. He was hopeless.

Nathan took a deep breath and shut his eyes. He thought of calling Haley anyway to see if they could maybe have a meaningful conversation for once instead of him always getting her voice mail, but before he could gather his courage to do it, his right butt cheek began to vibrate. Nathan's eyes sprung open as he snatched up the phone, but when he looked down it wasn't his own making that noise; it was Luke's. Without really thinking about it, Nathan picked it up and got ready to answer, figuring it was Karen calling her son like she usually did every Saturday some time before noon.

It wasn't Karen though and she wasn't calling.

It was Haley and she was texting her best friend.

Nathan sucked in a breath as he read then re-read what his ex-wife had just typed.

 _"u there? passing thru town tonite. have bout 90 mins 2 spare. can we hang?"_

Nathan knew he should be honest. He should tell Haley upfront who was reading this and why Lucas wasn't, but if he did that ... maybe Haley would change her mind about coming to Tree Hill.

He glanced over at his sleeping brother then typed exactly what he was certain Lucas would if he were conscious. _"definitely Hales. whr + whn?"_

It was almost a minute before Haley's reply came through. _"burning man dock. 7ish k?"_

Nathan couldn't stop grinning. _"gr8. will bring nate."_

This time Haley's reply came within seconds. _"no! no wy luke! 2 awkward!"_

Nathan lost his smile and felt his face redden at being rejected so blatantly, but he also didn't hesitate as he keyed then sent. _"pls hales. he needs 2 tlk 2 u."_

No reply.

" _hales_?"

Still no reply.

Nathan shook the phone in frustration and was about to type Haley's name again when she finally decided to respond.

 _"k fine but u cant bail 2 give us alone time, k? if nate shows + u don't, im leaving + ur dead!"_

Nathan could live with that. He thumbed out a promise on Luke's behalf to stick around and then he signed off, after which he did a jig around his brother's bed that proved once and for all he couldn't dance to save his life.

He didn't care and he couldn't stop smiling either.

He memorized Haley's first text and experienced a euphoria he hadn't felt since his wedding night, almost like he was eight years old again on Christmas morning and faced with a mountain of presents that were strictly for him. He was seventeen, of course, only a week away from starting his senior year in high school which meant guys his age are supposed to act cool about things like this, but no way could Nathan manage it. He studied the entire string of correspondence one last time, danced some more, then kissed Luke's phone and pumped the air with his fist, needing to share his good news with someone before he popped. And since the only person around was his brother, it was high time that Lucas joined the land of the living!


	2. Rousing Lucas

"Hey, Luke!" Nathan cried. He dropped the phone, charged over to the bed and jumped on top of his sleeping sibling. "Guess what? C'mon, man, wake up, ya knucklehead! You need to guess what!"

Lucas didn't want to. His head felt like it was stuffed with sweaters and his gut didn't feel right, on top of which he'd tossed restlessly a good portion of the night whenever he wasn't dreaming about shipwrecked zombies or murderous horseshoes chasing him. Sleep was the only thing he craved right now, a solid eight hours without dreams this time, so he could stop feeling like ass and he had the strength to shove Nathan off his back.

Why had he ever wanted a little brother again?

Lucas couldn't remember. He moaned a complaint and tried to forget that a hundred and eighty pounds were now joyfully crushing his spine, but Nathan wouldn't let him. The hyperactive teen kept mussing his hair and shaking his shoulders, yawping in his ear like they were six leagues away from each other instead of only a few inches. Lucas gave it one last shot and tried to bury his head under both of his pillows, but Nathan ripped them away and tossed them straight across the room. With no other choice, Lucas groaned into the mattress and opened his eye.

"What, dude? What do you want?"

"You will _never_ guess, Lucas."

"Agreed. Can I go back to sleep now?"

Nathan bounced on him again. "Haley's gonna to be in town later and she wants to meet up with us. Can you believe it, man?"

"Yes, now get off me."

"We're meeting up with her at the dock around seven tonight. Awesome, huh?"

"Mmm, can't wait."

"I know, right? Come _on!_ Get up and get dressed! You gotta help me pass the time until she gets here!"

As Nathan finally climbed off his back, Lucas looked up at Nathan sleepily, then closed his eyes again, turned onto his side and curled up. His plan was obviously to return to the land of Nod, but Nathan wasn't about to let that happen once he glanced at the clock on the nightstand and noted the time. He reached out and slapped Lucas on his cotton-covered butt.

"Move it, sleepyhead. Rise and shine!"

Lucas barely jerked as he forced himself to open his left eye. "I feel like crap, dude. I need more sleep. G'way."

Nathan slapped him again, harder this time. "Oh no, Big Brother. Forget it. It's almost ten o'clock so you've slept long enough. Up and at 'em, boy. Get up! Get up! Get up!"

Lucas had no choice but to do exactly that thanks to his ankles getting tugged over the side and his wrists getting yanked without mercy until he was sitting upright. He gathered what little energy he could muster to push himself to his feet, stumbling his way out the door and down the hall to the bathroom with Nathan hounding him at every step. The second they reached the threshold, Nathan booted him inside then shut the door after him with firm orders to hurry up.

Those two words were so not in Luke's vocabulary this day.

He yawned, fished himself out and swayed in front of the open toilet bowl for almost a minute before he realized he couldn't aim for crap and would be better off sitting down. The second he did, he promptly put his head down and passed out with his arms on his knees, his head on his arms and his pajama shorts pooled on the floor.

 **BANG! BANG! BANG!**

"Lucas! D'you drop dead in there or what?! C'mon, man! Let's go to the River Court!"

Lucas jerked awake and mumbled to Nathan that he was coming, but then he just sort of sat where he was, too fuzzy-headed to figure out his next step. He had no idea how long he'd been asleep; he didn't even know if he'd peed yet.

Whatever.

He stood up and shuffled to the sink to semi-wash his hands, run a brush over his teeth and splash water on his face, too whipped to even think about taking a shower. Maybe he stank, and maybe he didn't. If he did, so be it. He exited the bathroom and shuffled back to his room with his eyes mostly closed, totally not caring that he was swinging dick after leaving his pajama shorts on the bathroom floor. Nathan laughed at him and made a few jabs, but to Lucas, his teasing seemed far away, like on another astral plane. He dragged on some clothes and followed his brother downstairs, then collapsed on a chair in the kitchen and put his head down on his arms, hoping to catch at least a few Z's. God, he wanted his bed.

"Here. Eat this," Nathan said. "And drink up. It'll give you some pep before we go down to the River Court. God knows, you need it."

Lucas turned his head and opened one eye to see a homemade carrot muffin now sitting in front of him. Behind it was a glass of orange juice practically swimming in pulp, and Luke's stomach roiled at the thought of ingesting either one. "Uh-uh. No, thanks."

"Why not? I thought you they were your favorites."

"Not today they're not. I swallow that stuff and I'm gonna puke all over this counter. You in the mood to clean that up?"

"Let me think about that. Uh, no."

"Then let's just roll before I pass out again."

Nathan was all for that. He smirked at the way his older brother was dragging ass, but didn't give him any more grief about it while they got into his Mustang and he drove them downtown. On the River Court, Skills was already there with Fergie and Junk playing ball. All three were immersed in a game of 2-on-1 while Mouth made his usual cheerful commentary from the stands, and that was exactly what Nathan had hoped to see when he came up with the idea to come here. He parked the car, then cut the engine and nudged Lucas dozing beside him.

"Wake up, lazybones. We're here."

"Wh-? Already?"

"Yeah, now quit slacking and move that skinny ass of yours. I've got energy to burn before Haley gets here and so do you."

 _Wrong_ , Lucas thought groggily. _So wrong._ He was still climbing out of the car when Nathan was on the court playing with their friends, and by the time he joined Mouth in the bleachers, Nathan had just made his second basket. Nathan saw him about to sit down and jogged over to snag his arm.

"Oh no, you don't. Get your butt out there and let's shows these guys how the sons of Dan Scott play. Let's go, 3-on-2."

Lucas looked to Mouth to help him out, but the aspiring teenaged broadcaster only winked at him and cleared his throat. "We have another change in the line-up, Ladies and Gentlemen. Lucas Scott has just stepped onto the court, which means we're in for a treat as the most popular brothers in Tree Hill wipe the floor with the home team."

"Hear that?" Nathan asked with a slap to his shoulder. "You got no choice but to wake up now, Big Brother." Nathan waited for Lucas to stumble onto the court then turned to Mouth with the biggest grin anyone in Tree Hill had ever seen. "Hey Mouth, did Luke tell you Haley's coming back to town later tonight?"

"No way!"

"She is and this game's for her."

Tired as he was, Lucas turned back to Nathan and forced himself to chuckle. "Dude, calm down. She's not even here yet to watch you play."

"But she's coming," Nathan insisted happily. "And this game is 100% for her. Everything I do today is gonna be awesome just for her. You wait and see."


	3. Clouds Begin to Form

Nathan wasn't lying. For the rest of the morning he was a powerhouse, weaving around everyone on the River Court to get to the rack and sink one shot after another. He caught 80% of the rebounds, he stole the ball from anyone on the opposing team who dared to have it and his slam dunks put them all to shame, none more so than his older brother.

Lucas tried to keep up, but the harder he played, the more his head began to cloud until finally, he had no choice but to sink to the ground off the sideline for a time out. He got ribbed by the guys for letting his energy get sapped by Brooke one too many times under the sheets, and he teased them right back for their jealousy, but in truth, Lucas hadn't had any sex recently with his hot cheerleader girlfriend. For one thing, Brooke had only barely returned to town after an entire summer away, but more importantly, Lucas himself hadn't been in the mood for intimacy, or anything else, really, for almost a week.

Was he coming down with a cold?

Lucas didn't think so. He didn't feel like it was a cold about to hit him, or the flu, or even like it was one of those stomach viruses that kept a body in the bathroom for hours. It didn't feel like anything he'd ever had before. He didn't know what it was. All he did know was that he'd slept worse and felt crappier today more than any other day this week, and he just ... wanted ... to _rest_. He couldn't though. None of the guys would let him, least of all Nathan, so Lucas forced himself to get up and get back in the game, doing his level best to mask the fatigue and the nausea that were really starting to build.

Around one o'clock, the boys halted for burgers, pizza and milkshakes at one of the outdoor cafés across the river. Lucas was relieved beyond belief to be getting a break, and he knew he should be hungry by now – hell, with all the calories he'd burned, he knew he should be starving – but somehow, for some reason, he still wasn't ready to eat. He took one look at the food, felt his stomach lurch and disappeared into the nearest bathroom. When he exited the handicapped stall, Nathan was right there, his brow creased with concern.

"You okay, man?"

Lucas walked past him to the sinks, trying not to swallow. "You remember those tacos Dad made us for supper last night, and the hot dogs we had for lunch yesterday, and the omelets we had for breakfast, like, four hours before that?"

"Yeah."

"Well, they don't look or taste nearly as appetizing coming back up."

As Lucas bent over, spit, then stuck his tongue under the tap to rinse, Nathan made a face. "Jesus, Luke, are you sick? You want me to drive you home? Maybe you should take a nap or something, so your stomach settles before we meet Haley later."

"Oh, you mean like take the nap I wanted to take before we even left the house?"

Lucas said that with a smile as he stood up and wiped his mouth, so Nathan grinned back at him. "Sorry, dude. I thought you were being a slacker."

"Well, I wasn't, but forget it; I'm good now. I just need some ginger ale."

"You sure? I can take you home for a little whi—"

"I'm sure, Nate. I'll be even better by the time we meet Hales tonight."

A relieved Nathan opened the door to the men's room, then led the way back to their table. "You and me both, Big Brother. I know I've been acting like Haley and me being separated was for the best, but to be honest, I've been waiting months for this day. I can't wait to see her and talk to her in person for once. The voice mail thing totally isn't working for me."

"I hear that. How long is she staying again?"

"About an hour and a half she said. She's just passing through and she wanted to catch up with you."

" _And_ you too."

"Yeah, um, about that..."

Quickly, Nathan told Lucas about checking his phone while he was asleep and replying to Haley's texts as though he were Lucas himself. He finished filling his brother in just as they reached their table, and he braced himself for the punch in the arm he was sure to get for being so deceptive, but Lucas just smirked at him and took a seat.

"I get it, Nate. I probably would have done the same thing."

Lucas offered his fist and Nathan bumped it.

"Cool. Your ginger ale's on me then," Nathan offered with a grin. "It's the least I can do when you don't get on my case for impersonating you."

As Nathan left to go get him a drink, Lucas leaned forward and focused on his shoes, trying to will his stomach to settle and the cotton in his head to clear. Both Mouth and Skills asked him what was up, but Lucas brushed off their concerns and made sure he was sitting up straight by the time Nathan returned.

After lunch the boys all returned to the River Court, but the moment Lucas squared his shoulders and began to follow Junk onto the concrete playing surface, Nathan slipped between them and blocked his path.

"Forget it, Luke. Sit with Mouth and relax."

"But —"

"I said forget it. I need you on two feet tonight when we meet up later with Haley, remember? You're not gonna be any good to me if you're still weak and puking. She'll spend all her time fussing over you instead of talking with me."

He had a point, so Lucas sat in the bleachers beside Mouth as ordered and watched Nate and Junk take on Skills and Fergie in a game of 2-on-2. He told himself to keep sipping his leftover ginger ale and focus on the plays happening before him ten feet away, but he couldn't keep it up. Within the hour, he stumbled away from Mouth, hurried over to one of the public garbage cans behind the parking lot and retched inside it. When he straightened up ten minutes later, there was his brother again.


	4. And the Bad News Just Keeps on Coming

"That's it," Nathan told him. "I'm taking you home, you're gonna pop some aspirin or something, and then you're gonna sleep this thing off."

"What about Hale—?" Lucas began but Nathan cut him off.

"She'll be here over four hours from now," he said with determination. "It's only a little after two, so we've got plenty of time to get you home, rested and then back out here with me by the time she arrives. Deal?"

Lucas nodded carefully, not trusting himself to speak. If he did, he might hurl again.

Nathan told the guys goodbye for them both and Lucas was thankful for that too. He put the front passenger seat back in the Mustang as far as it would go, then lay down while Nathan got in beside him and drove them off. The breeze coming through the windows felt really nice. He hated August in his home state sometimes. It was too damn hot.

Suddenly, the car was parked, his door was open and Nathan was outside it, tapping his shoulder. Lucas looked past him and blinked several times, unable to believe that he was really seeing the front windows of the Scott mansion.

"We're here already?"

"Yup."

"But how—?"

"You passed out less than thirty seconds after we left the court, Luke. You need sleep. Let's get you to bed."

Telling himself that it was only a few steps more, Lucas sat up and got out. Barely a foot from the car, however, he felt infinitely worse, as though the horrid sensations that had been plaguing him all day were back with a vengeance now that he could safely collapse at home. All at once a thick mental fog was descending and the world around him seemed to be receding like he was slow-motion travelling through a dream on the Golden Gate Bridge. Was he really home? Lucas was no longer convinced. He felt hot and cold by turns, and the strangest thoughts were beginning to crowd his mind. With no choice but to go inside lest he get hopelessly lost at sea, Lucas followed a shadowy figure that seemed to be Nathan to the front door of the castle ahead of them. The ground was shifting unbearably and he longed for stability. He was sure he knew what would make him feel better though. If only he had his bed, a Magic 8 Ball and a marshmallow he would be okay. He would be way up high and safe in the lighthouse well before the volcanos started erupting in Polynesia.

In the entrance hall, Dan and Deb were discussing where to place the gold leaf side table they had picked up today when their sons stepped in the door behind them. Dan had his back to them so it was Deb who saw them first, and the second she spied the boys, specifically the older of the two, the topic of conversation shifted instantly.

"Lucas, honey, are you all right?"

"Sure, Mom," Lucas mumbled, "but the sticky world is ending. I think I need a cello."

As Lucas tried to head for the stairs with Nathan now supporting him, Dan turned around and blocked their path. Clearly, Lucas was not okay if he was talking gibberish, calling Deb 'Mom' and mistaking her for Karen.

"Hold it, son." Dan put a hand to Luke's forehead then felt the rest of his face. "Good God, you're hot. What've you two been doing?"

Lucas didn't have the energy to reply, and he definitely lacked the willpower to circumvent his dad. Without warning, he let go of Nathan, fell back against the closest wall and slid to the floor before anyone could catch him.

Nathan dashed to his side and cursed internally as he saw major concern building on his parents' faces. "Look, guys, don't flip out. He's just whipped 'cause he didn't get enough sleep last night. I was just about to put him to bed."

Nathan tried to help Lucas to his feet, but Dan brushed him aside. As he crouched next to his firstborn, he glanced at Nathan sharply. "It's more than a lack of sleep, son; look at him." Before Nathan could respond, Dan barked at him to get an oral thermometer.

"But Dad, all he needs is—"

"Nathan!"

Nathan hesitated a second longer, then took the stairs three at a time to the oversized bathroom on the second floor that he shared with Lucas. As he grasped the instrument his dad wanted from the top shelf on the medicine cabinet, and then jogged back down to his parents, he sent a quick plea upwards. Lucas couldn't afford to be seriously sick; please God, not today. If he was, their parents would never let him out of the house in time to see Haley.

Downstairs, Dan snatched the digital thermometer from Nathan's fist. He coaxed Lucas to wake up and open his mouth, and then he slipped the object inside and held it there, his other hand once again on Luke's forehead. For several seconds, no one spoke until Deb looked over at Nathan, who was hovering nearby.

"Honey, how did he get this way? What happened after we left the house this morning?"

"Mom, I don't know. He was kind of out of it when I woke him up, but I figured he just needed to eat and start mov—"

"Well, what did he eat? Maybe it was food poiso—"

"Mom, he didn't eat anything all day. He said he'd puke if he ate breakfast, and then he did puke at lunch—"

"Wait, he threw up?"

The thermometer beeped. Nathan shut his mouth and waited anxiously for the verdict as Dan took it from Luke's mouth, then read aloud the numbers on the display.

"103.6." Dan turned to his wife grimly. "I'll take him Lucas up to bed and give him something to bring down his fever. Deb, you call Karen and tell her he must've picked up some kind of flu."

"She's out of town this week, remember?"

"Call her anyway 'cause she'll want to know. Make sure she knows I'm taking care of our son."

As Deb left to go use the phone in the kitchen and Dan prepared to lift Lucas off the floor, Nathan put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"Um, wait a minute, Dad."

"What?"

"The meds you're gonna give Luke ... they're not gonna knock him out even more, are they?"

"Nathan, what the—?"

"Look, I know this is gonna sound bad, but I need him later and he's okay with that. If you start pumping him full of stuff that's gonna wipe him out until morning, I'll never get him to go out—"

"No, you won't, son. _You_ can go out if you want to, but your brother's staying home tonight; I don't care what your plans were."

"But it's just to the dock and we won't be gone long—"

"Too bad." Dan ignored Nathan's objections as he lifted Luke's dead weight in his arms, then stood up with a grunt and turned toward the staircase. "Your brother has a high fever and you can see for yourself he's exhausted. He's not well enough to go anywhere."

"But, Dad—"

"Nathan, I know you two are practically joined at the hip lately, but once upon a time you used to be an only child, so just be that kid again. Now stop thinking of yourself and move out of the way."

"Dad—"

 _"Nathan, move out of the way!"_

A frustrated Nathan stuffed his hands in his pocket and stepped aside. He watched Dan carry Lucas upstairs and lay him down in bed, and he kept hoping that Lucas would stir a little bit and mutter a complaint or two to prove that he was aware of his surroundings and that he wasn't really as drained as their dad seemed to think.

Lucas didn't do squat.

He didn't open a single eye while Dan removed his shoes and socks, or pulled his shirt over his head, and he didn't react in the slightest when his jeans were unbuttoned and he was stripped below the waist. When Deb walked into the room just as Dan was about to pull the covers up, and a stark naked Lucas _still_ didn't stir, Nathan knew it was official. He couldn't keep fooling himself. His older brother wasn't just tired. He was sick just as their dad kept insisting he was, and if Nathan wanted to meet up with Haley, he was going to have to go alone ... which meant he was probably going to have to stand on the dock and watch as the love of his life saw him there without Lucas and then promptly turned her back to him.

 _Damn it!_

Nathan scanned the room, trying to think of some way to prevent Haley from ditching him, when his eyes fell on his brother's phone. It was still there on the desk where he'd left it that morning, so while Deb and Dan fussed over Lucas, Nathan sidled over to the desk top, picked it up, and then eased into the hallway. From there, he slipped downstairs and headed straight for the family room beside the kitchen, refining the plan he was formulating in his head with every step.

He knew exactly what to do.

Since he had successfully passed for Lucas this morning, he would be just him again. He would text Haley and tell her "he" really couldn't make it tonight but that she had to stick around on the dock anyway because Nathan really needed to talk.

Only ... would she care?

Probably not.

Haley didn't _want_ to talk to him anymore because every time they did they somehow always ended up arguing. Damn. Okay, maybe "he" would just tell that "he" was sick and that she had to visit him at the house instead. Yeah! That would work, wouldn't it? Nathan thought a minute longer until he realized no, that wouldn't work either. If Lucas was too sick to leave the house, he wouldn't encourage his best friend to come visit him and maybe catch his germs. It might ruin her music tour and he wasn't that selfish.

Fresh out of ideas, Nathan glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece, then tossed Luke's cell phone aside and began to pace.

 _How the hell was he going to get Haley to agree to meet up with him alone?_

He had no clue. All he did know was that he had less than five hours to figure it out...


	5. Desperation

By six-thirty, a freshly-showered Nathan was well and truly desperate. With not a single viable option coming to mind in the last two hundred and forty minutes, he checked the kitchen to ensure his parents were still in there making supper together and then he dashed upstairs.

He was probably going to hell for this, but he would worry about that later.

In the bedroom across from his own, he hurried over to Lucas and felt his brother's forehead. The fever was still there but not as high as it had been. That was a good sign, right? Nathan told himself it was. Fully aware that it would only be another twenty minutes or so before Dan or Deb came upstairs again to check on their patient, Nathan ripped the covers off Luke's body, then dressed him hurriedly in the same clothes their dad had removed earlier. The socks were a bit crooked and the T-shirt was inside out, but in the grand scheme of things, Nathan figured he hadn't done too badly. He tapped Lucas across the face then shook both of his shoulders as hard as he dared.

"Luke? Luke, wake up, man, we gotta go." As two lids fluttered open and blue eyes met blue, Nathan grinned down at him. "That's it, Brother. C'mon, let's get you on your feet, okay? It's time to meet Haley."

"H-Haley?"

"Yeah, remember our plans?"

"Yeah, I miss ... I miss her."

"Me too, buddy, now come on, okay? No, no, no, don't close your eyes, Luke! I need you to wake up 'cause we gotta go. That's it. Let's get you outta bed."

Lucas let himself be pulled upright in bed only because he had no strength to resist. The second he did, he moaned and began to tilt forward. "I-I don't feel well, Nate. I think ... I'm think gonna ..."

Nathan took one look at him and snatched the garbage can from under his desk with a speed he never would have thought possible. It wasn't a moment too soon either. He kept an eye on the clock as Lucas threw up, then patted him on the back when nothing more seemed to be coming up. "You done, bud?"

Lucas chanced a nod, trying hard not to heave again. "I...I think so."

"Okay, let's, uh, get you into the bathroom so you can brush your teeth, like, super fast." Nathan helped Lucas to his feet, then caught him quick and straightened him up again when Luke's knees began to buckle. "C'mon, man, don't fade on me. We can't meet Haley with vomit on your breath."

"Hales..."

"That's right, Big Brother, your best friend and the love of my life."

It wasn't easy for either of them, but somehow a sweating Nathan got Lucas presentable, down the stairs and out of the house without making a racket or drawing the attention of their parents. His pesky conscience kept trying to speak up and tell him this was a bad idea, that Lucas needed sleep not a pointless jaunt across town, but Nathan refused to listen. He buckled Lucas into the Mustang, then zipped around to the driver's side and hopped in. Ten seconds later, he was out of the Scott driveway and down the road. He didn't dare look back.

The dock where Haley wanted to meet them was on Market Street, and the shortest way there from their home on Country Club Road was to head north past Oleander Drive until their street turned into Colonial Drive and then merged for a bit with Forest Hills. Once they left Forest Hills behind, they just had to keep going until they hit coastal highway 17, and then drive east until they reached the dock and turned off. In their relatively small town, it was a twelve-minute drive with no traffic – maybe twenty to thirty minutes long during rush hour – but this was a Saturday evening in August with no major festivals or concerts scheduled anywhere in town. Nathan was sure he could make it in ten minutes tops.

He was wrong.

In the four hours since Lucas and Nathan had been home, an incident requiring police involvement had befallen a family on Mimosa Place right where it intersected with the very street they lived on. Nathan couldn't believe it. Not three minutes from the house and they were blocked, unable to drive forward past the deputies in the middle of the road that were cordoning off the area and directing everyone to turn around to find their own detours. In the front passenger seat, Lucas stirred as the strobe lights on top of the cop cars flashed in his face and woke him up.

"What ... What's going on, Nate?"

"Don't worry about it," Nathan told him. "I got this."

Lucas passed out again. Beside him, Nathan put the Mustang in reverse then pulled a U-turn and drove them back to Oleander Drive. He kept right to the speed limit since the street he was driving on was residential and a half dozen police cars were parked right up the road, but the second he reached the light and turned left, he gunned the engine.

His new plan was to take Oleander to Independence Boulevard, and then take Independence to Covil Avenue until that intersected with Market Street, but luck still wasn't with him. Midway up Covil, he braked hard. Construction was underway up ahead, which meant his only option now was to turn the car around _again_ , then take a left onto Randall Parkway, hang another left on South College Road and end up driving way too many miles out of his way. With less than six minutes at this point to reach the dock, get Lucas upright, mop the sweat off both their faces _and_ greet Haley looking semi-decent, there was no doubt about it. They were going to be late.

 _"Shit!"_

Nathan shoved the Mustang in reverse and spun them south, determined not to be late and waste a single minute of their time with Haley even if he had to run every traffic light, stop sign and speed limit to get it done. He had all but forgotten his brother in the passenger seat beside him getting rocked left and right until Luke's hot hand suddenly brushed his arm.

"Nate ... stop the car ... I think ... I think I need to puke."

"What?!" Nathan glanced over and saw his brother's ash-colored face. "No, no, no, Luke, hold it, man! Just wait—"

Lucas couldn't. He lurched forward against the seatbelt and dumped the contents of his stomach on his lap, the seat, and the floorboards of the Mustang, pretty much everywhere he could reach on his side of the car.

Nathan felt like crying. He pulled over, put his head down on top of the wheel and focused on keeping it bottled in, too upset by his run of bad luck to think of helping his brother or to even care about the stench now permeating the car. Why was this happening to him? Why today of all friggin' days? He listened to Lucas retch for what felt like forever, hating him irrationally for being sick the very day Nathan needed to be healthy, but nothing either of them felt was changing their situation. Eventually, Luke's gut had no more to give and the only sound to be heard was a series of dry heaves.

"I'm sorry," Lucas croaked when he was able to speak. "I ... I c-couldn't help it."

Slowly, Nathan looked over at him.

And felt like crap.

He knew he wasn't at fault for Lucas being sick, but he was definitely responsible for Lucas being sick in this car right now. What was he doing putting his brother through this? Was he stupid or something? What the hell had he thought would happen once he got him to the dock anyway? That a miracle would occur? That Lucas would just recover on the spot, hug Haley hello, chat her up all normal as can be, and then smoothly fade into the background while Nathan took over?

Luke's suffering was wrong, all of it was just so wrong. He didn't need to see Haley when he was so obviously unwell, and Nathan had no right forcing him to just because _he_ wanted to spend time with his wife. She would never, ever sanction him treating her best friend this way and Nathan should have known that right from the start.

God, what kind of brother was he?

Nathan could only hope that he was the kind to deserve forgiveness. He reached out and put a hand on Luke's head, trying hard not to think of Haley waiting alone for them on the dock. "Don't be sorry, man. I'm the one who's sorry."

"Nate—"

"Forget it. I'll take you home."


	6. Home for Good

The ride home began at a far more sedate pace. Lucas didn't need to experience any more bumps or fast turns that might jar his sensitive stomach again, and Nathan wasn't exactly in a hurry to get home knowing that their parents were probably well aware by now that both of their sons were missing. Nathan also needed to clean his brother up before they got there. For one thing, their parents would flip the hell out if he brought Lucas back covered in vomit, and for another thing, the stink in the car was nasty. If Nathan had to smell it for much longer, he just might puke himself.

The closest gas station was at a Han-Dee Hugo's convenience store on Oleander, so Nathan dug his cell phone out of his pocket while he drove east, needing to call Haley on hers. He wanted to talk to her at least and explain why they'd had to bail at the last minute, but, of course, all he got was her voice mail. He wasn't surprised by that – how could he be when he'd been getting exactly that for months every time he called her – but still. It hurt just like it always did. Hating that invention more than he ever had before, Nathan left a curt message then hung up. He looked over at his brother and was glad to see that Luke's eyes were open, even if they were seriously glazed.

"You okay, man?"

"I ... smell, Nate."

"I know, dude. Just hold on. I'm gonna get you fixed up before I take you back to Mom and Dad."

"I feel like ... Hemingway ... and cheese ... I want m' uncle keys ... Daddy ..."

As Luke's voice trailed off and he seemed to pass out, Nathan reached over and put a hand to his forehead. The heat radiating from it this time was scary, much more intense than it had been only a minute ago. Nathan sucked in a breath and stepped on the gas. Screw the plan to clean Lucas up first or to take his time driving; he needed to get his brother home and fast.

000000000000

On the walkway outside the house, there were Deb and Dan. They were talking heatedly as Dan began heading toward his GMC Yukon, but the moment they noticed Nathan pulling into the driveway, they both ran towards his Mustang. Nathan jerked to a stop where he was so he didn't run them over, bracing himself for the worst.

He wasn't disappointed.

As Deb hurried over to Luke's side, put a hand to his forehead through the open window and then immediately fished the digital thermometer from her pocket and slipped it into his mouth, Dan wrenched open the driver's side door and yanked his thoughtless second son from the car. In no time at all, Dan had a tight grip on Nathan's arm and was slapping his bottom hard right where he stood on the open driveway.

 _"Nathan! What the hell did you think you were doing sneaking your brother out of the house?"_

"Ow! Stop it, Dad! Just listen, okay?"

But Dan wasn't in the mood. He kept on spanking and scolding until the thermometer beeped which, luckily for Nathan, wasn't long at all. While the red-faced teenager clutched the seat of his pants and looked around in a panic at the neighboring houses, Dan wasn't the least bit concerned as to who was outside and had just seen him swatting one of his boys. He let Nathan go and hurried around the car to join Deb, who was reading the numbers on the thermometer with a worried frown.

"How is he, Deb? How's my son?"

"Lucas is really burning up now, Dan. His fever is 104.5 and look at this. He must have thrown up I don't know how many times."

"Never mind the mess," Dan said, cutting her off and nudging her aside. He opened the passenger side door. "I'll take him upstairs. You fill the tub in the boys' bathroom room with cool water and get some Tylenol."

"Shouldn't we take him to the hospital?"

"We can't just yet. Lucas hasn't been anywhere tropical. He doesn't have a rash and he's not bleeding or in pain. I already called the hospital before, and they told me they won't admit him unless his fever spikes to 105 and we can't get his temperature down on our own."

"All right, I'll get a bath started."

Nathan watched his mother take off for the house, and then turned to his father as Dan lifted his firstborn son in his arms for the second time that day.

"Dad, I'm sorry. I didn't mean—"

 _"The car stinks. Stay here and clean it."_

Nathan's shoulders slumped as he watched his family head inside without him. Unconsciously, he reached back to rub at the lingering sting in his behind, but then a barking dog down the street reminded him that he was outside and he drew his hands away.

He turned back to the Mustang.

To clean it properly would take hours, hours of wiping and hosing and scrubbing while he tried pointlessly to hold his breath. For sure he couldn't take it to a professional car wash to let them do the job for him; there's no way they would accept a vehicle in this condition. And he definitely couldn't postpone the job until morning; if he did, the stench of puke would never come out ... and then his dad would _really_ kill him.

Nathan sighed and looked east for a minute, picturing Haley at the dock with the late afternoon sun shining down on her silky hair. She was so close to him right now. So close. If he could just—

Nathan forced himself not to finish that thought.

In less than two hours, Haley would be gone from Tree Hill anyway. It's not like she was planning to stay or to come back to him forever. She didn't love him like she used to. She had Chris Keller now.

Nathan blinked fast and turned away from the street, heading for the garage, and the hose, and the fun job that awaited him.


	7. Pointless Apologies

By ten o'clock that night, a very tired Nathan decided that he was done. He'd had enough of the spritzing and the wiping and the vacuuming, and if he never saw another box of baking soda for the rest of his life, it would be too soon. The smell of vomit wasn't completely gone from the Mustang's interior, but that was too damn bad. He'd done the best he could. The convertible top was down and Mother Nature's breeze was just going to have to do the rest.

In the house on the ground floor, the lights were on in almost every room as usual, but neither Dan nor Deb were anywhere to be found. Nathan trudged into the kitchen, went straight to the refrigerator and guzzled a full bottle of water, then tossed the plastic bottle aside, helped himself to another and guzzled that one too inside of a minute. After he'd quenched his thirst, he leaned wearily against the counter for a moment before he dragged his feet into the family room, collapsed onto the closest couch and flipped on the television set. He wasn't really in the mood to watch anything, but it was better than going to his room and probably bumping into his parents along the way. And it wasn't just them Nathan was likely to see. Upstairs was also Lucas and Illness and Guilt.

Within five minutes, however, Nathan couldn't stand it. He needed a shower, but far more important than that, he needed to know how his brother was doing since he couldn't stop thinking about him. He turned off the TV, gathered his courage and went upstairs.

In Luke's bedroom, Dan wasn't there but Deb was seated on the mattress beside her step-son, taking care of him while he slept. From the open doorway, Nathan watched her soak a hand towel in a bowl on Luke's night-stand, then squeeze out the excess water and apply it gently to his face and neck. She was humming tunelessly while she worked, and for a moment, Nathan didn't feel worry or sympathy anymore. He felt jealousy. It had been ages since he had been sick enough himself to get that kind of sustained attention from his mom; somehow it didn't seem fair that she could shift her love so easily to a kid that wasn't even hers.

Nathan was being an idiot, though. He knew that.

He suppressed his envy and took a step into the room, shoving his hands deep inside his front pockets. When Deb sensed him coming close and turned to look up at him, her disappointment in his behavior clear, Nathan met her eyes with difficulty and gave a small shrug.

"I'm sorry, Mom."

"You should be," Deb told him without a trace of understanding. "What you did a few hours ago ... it was inconsiderate and inexcusable, Nathan. You had no right."

Nathan looked away. He waited until Deb's focus was once again on Lucas before he asked, "Did the bath help his fever to go down any?"

"Yes, it did, but not enough."

"Well ... can I help?"

Before Deb could answer, Dan marched into the room and brushed past him. "Sure you can help. You can help by going back outside and washing that expensive car I gave you."

"I did already," Nathan said defensively. "The Mustang is clean, Dad."

"Wash it again."

"Are you serious?"

"You don't want to wash it? Fine. Go to bed then."

"Come on, Dad. It's too early for that. Look, why don't I give you guys a break and stay with Lucas for a—"

"I have a better idea," Dan interrupted, turning to look at him hard. "Why don't you do as you're told for once and go to your room."

"Dad—"

"I suggest you shut your mouth and get out of my sight, son, before I decide to take you downstairs to my office tonight instead of tomorrow."

Nathan's jaw flapped soundlessly for a moment as he stared at his father in complete disbelief. Finally, he found his tongue. "You already flipped out at me when I brought Lucas home, Dad. You don't really think you're gonna —?"

"Gonna what? Spank you again for this screw-up? Put you over my knee for deliberately disobeying me by dragging your brother out of the house when I told you he wasn't well enough to go anywhere? You bet I am, son. Now go to bed."

"But, Dad!"

 _"Go to bed!"_

Nathan did although for the life of him he had no idea why he obeyed. He forgot his need for a shower, somehow made it back to his own room, and sat on his bed in shock, unable to think past anything except what he'd just been told and what was in store for him tomorrow. It had been five weeks since he and Lucas had trashed the Bugatti, but aside from the odd slap for being rude or refusing to cut the attitude, he hadn't really been in trouble since then. Neither brother had. Was Nathan really going to get another spanking at the age of seventeen? What the hell kind of strict-ass father had Dan Scott become?

Nathan couldn't figure it out ... not that it mattered in any case. He had no money saved to move out again, and even if he did have the money, it wouldn't last long; he knew that already from experience. Getting another minimum wage job at the mall was always a possibility, but Nathan didn't want to do that again if he could help it. Living paycheck to paycheck no way to get through high school.

Maybe he could go to a friend's house?

Nathan thought briefly of fleeing to Tim's just to spend a couple of nights until his dad cooled down, but that wouldn't solve anything in the long run and he knew it. His Dudley Do-Right kind of dad would just track him down and bring him home, and then probably _still_ yank him over his knee for running away.

Thinking of his dad's right hand and the burning pain it could inflict, Nathan felt utterly defeated as he stripped down to his boxers and then lay down in bed. Between the embarrassing slaps he'd already received outside and Luke's crappy health, not to mention dumping Haley without warning and the current state of his Mustang, it was official as far as Nathan was concerned.

This day had sucked ass for the last eight hours straight, and the worst was still to come.


	8. Early Morning Blues

The next morning, Nathan didn't feel very rested. Every dream he remembered having had featured either Haley meeting up with him only to present him with divorce papers, or Lucas needing hospitalization then dying inside of a week. In the middle of one of these godawful dreams, Nathan jerked himself awake towards dawn, his heart pounding as he sat straight up in bed ready to fight for the people he loved. It took well over a minute for him to realize that none of it was real and that he didn't need to be clutching his bedsheets so tightly.

He lay back down in stages, staring at the ceiling in relief.

He thought of Haley first, but low murmuring from across the hall got him thinking about his brother and what he had put him through the day before. Nathan was sorry for that, more sorry that Lucas was ever likely to know, but if a do-over was possible and Nathan could guarantee a visit with Haley this time, even if his dad gave him the worst butt-busting in history for it ... he knew deep down that he would probably take the exact same risks again.

Some brother he was.

Cursing himself as well as everything that had gone wrong the day before, a dishevelled Nathan sat up, then pushed to his feet and padded barefoot to his slightly open door. Both of his parents were in Luke's bedroom, and through the crack, Nathan watched the goings-on twenty feet away, waiting for his father to leave. The moment Dan did and passed out of sight in the direction of the stairs, Nathan counted five more seconds then exited his room. He walked over and lingered in the doorway, reluctant to go closer.

Lucas was still unmoving on his back with a single sheet covering his bare body. By his side, a weary Deb was sitting and stroking the sweaty hair from his forehead, her clothes unchanged from the day before. Nathan watched them both for a moment before he took a single step into the room, his arms crossed over his bare chest.

"Mom?"

Deb glanced over at her son. From the way Nathan was keeping his distance and the difficulty he was having keeping eye contact, she could tell he hadn't slept well and could use some comfort and attention, but she really didn't have it in her to give right now. She was too tired for that; like Dan, she had been up most of the night tending his brother.

"What is it, Nathan? What do you need?"

"Um, nothing. I just ... are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

Nathan waited for Deb to notice his depression and to offer some maternal sympathy like she usually did, but nothing happened. He frowned and rocked on his heels a bit, stealing guilty peaks at Lucas. "Okay, well ... how's my brother?"

"Your dad thinks he's on the mend, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed too," Deb said quietly. "His fever finally broke about an hour ago and it hasn't spiked again so far."

Nathan stepped deeper into the room until he was at the base of Luke's bed. Logically, he knew his older brother had been pretty sick before he'd taken him out last night, but still, his fever might have broken a lot earlier if Nathan hadn't dragged him outside when he should have been home resting. Nathan let his arms drop and squeezed Luke's foot by way of apology before he glanced over at his mother then lowered his head. "I'm sorry, Mom."

Deb sighed. "I know you are, honey."

"Can you ... talk to Dad for me?"

"What for?"

Nathan hugged his chest tighter and blushed. "'Cause I don't want to get spanked again, Mom. Dad's planning to do it sometime today for what I did, and I don't want him to. I'm way too old for that and it hurts."

As exhausted as Deb was, that got her attention and she turned to her son in annoyance. "Well, you should've thought of that, shouldn't you, before you disobeyed us and snuck Lucas out of the house? You knew perfectly well that he was sick, Nathan, and that he wasn't fit to go anywhere. It seems to me that a spanking from your father is exactly what you deserve."

"But, Mom—"

"No."

"Just listen okay? I had a good—"

"I said no, Nathan. I don't want to hear it."

"Come on, Mom, please! I swear I had a good reason!"

Deb turned back to her step-son. She sat stiff and silent for quite a while before she finally relented. "All right, tell me. Why did you do it?"

Nathan shrugged, his face growing hot. "Haley was in town last night and I just ... I had to see her. She only had a brief window to meet up and she was only willing to see me if Lucas was there. Lucas knew that and he understood." As Deb seemed unmoved, Nathan tried harder to get her to empathize. "I haven't seen her in months, Mom, and I still love her. Don't you get it? I had to try and Lucas understood!"

Deb sighed and shook her head. "Well, you can tell your father that when he asks what possessed you."

"Dad won't care," Nathan said angrily. "He thinks our marriage was a mistake."

"And so do I."

"But you know me, Mom. You get me in ways Dad never has." Nathan went around the bed and looked at Deb pleadingly, begging her to see his point of view. "I miss Haley, okay? I miss her like I've never missed anything before in my life. Basketball and hanging out with Luke helps, but I'm always thinking about her no matter what I'm doing. Haley is someone I need, Mom, because she changed me for the better. I was a total jerk in high school before I met her. You know that." As Deb's face softened, recognizing that this was true, Nathan pressed his advantage by going down on bended knee. "Please, Mom. Just ... try to get Dad to understand."

Deb tried to remain stern, but she thought back to own teenage years and let her resolve weaken. "All right," she conceded. "I'll talk to your father." The hug Nathan gave her then was welcome, but the smile on his face struck her as a bit too confident, so she looked at him pointedly. "But I make no promises, young man. Is that clear?"

Nathan nodded gratefully, his grin undiminished. "It's clear, Mom. Thanks."

For five minutes more Nathan hung around and kept Deb company, but Dan's approaching footsteps put an end to that quickly. Nathan zipped down the hall to the bathroom to relieve himself and take a much-needed shower, his ears pricked the entire time for the heavy steps that would signal his dad's approach. From experience Nathan knew that the longer his parents talked, the more likely it was that Dan Scott would actually listen to his wife and come around to her way of thinking, so Nathan prayed that their discussion took ages and that his mom was especially convincing.

His prayers were not answered.

In what felt like no time at all, his dad was banging on the bathroom door, ordering him to step out and get his butt downstairs. Nathan shouted that he was all wet and that he'd be out in a minute, but Dan kept on pounding louder and more insistently. Cursing under the steam, Nathan shampooed his head quick then lathered his body super-fast while standing directly under the spray. He spun around once to rinse off as much as he could, but he was still soapy in places when he turned off the water, jumped out of the shower, snatched a towel to wrap around his waist, and then unlocked the door. Before Nathan could turn the knob, Dan did it for him, the expression on his face just as stormy as it has been eight hours ago.

"My office!" he barked. " _Now!_ "


	9. A Sore Bottom and Faith Renewed

Nathan considered arguing, but in his father's face right now he saw no mercy, so he knew he'd just be wasting his breath. Asking for some time to dry off and get dressed would be equally pointless, Nathan knew, so he snatched up yesterday's boxer shorts, then squeezed past Dan with a sick feeling in his gut, heading directly for the stairs and the ass-kicking that awaited him. In the private office on the ground floor of the mansion, he let Dan push him into the room but resisted the urge to push back. He could take what was about to happen. He'd done it before so he could do it again. And no way in hell was he going to act cowardly or beg. He'd rather die first.

He stepped into his shorts and pulled them up quick under the towel, then straightened up, tossed the towel aside and faced his father squarely.

Dan stared back at him for well over a minute before he spoke. "Your mother tells me I should go easy on you because your actions last night were fueled by desperate love. Is that right?"

Nathan raised his chin high, refusing to react to the water dripping from his hair and creating irritating rivers down his spine. "Yeah, Dad, it is. Haley's still my wife and I love her."

"Do you now?"

" _Yes_. I just said I did, didn't I?"

Dan nodded and took a step closer, crowding him on purpose. "Well, son, my actions are also fueled by love. Love for your brother whose fever spiked so high last night your mother and I were _this_ close to dialing 9-1-1."

"What?" Nathan took a step back and lost the attitude, confused and cold all at once. "Wait a minute. You almost took Luke to the hospital?"

" _Yes_. While you were sleeping across the hall without a care in the world, your brother – my son – was dying."

Nathan paled, realizing his dreams about Lucas needing an ambulance hadn't been dreams at all. He looked at his father guiltily, his shoulders beginning to slump. "Dad ... I'm sorry."

To that, Dan shut the door decisively and locked, then sat in the leather chair and glared at up at him. "Prove it."

Nathan swallowed hard, knowing exactly what meant. Love or no love for Haley, he wasn't going to get out of this. That had never been the plan no matter what he had hoped upstairs with his mom. When Dan Scott was in a mood like this, he saw and heard nothing if it conflicted with what he'd already decided, and what he had decided hours ago was that the younger of his two sons deserved a spanking.

Frankly, after learning what he just had, Nathan wasn't so sure anymore that he didn't deserve one, so he sucked it up, took a deep breath and bent over Dan's lap, wincing and tightening his cheeks seconds later as the first slap landed to ignite his skin right through his boxers. Another spank followed and then more followed after that, and with each one, Nathan bit down hard on his lower lip to get through it, trying to breathe shallow breaths and to focus on the end goal like he would during any other workout. This wasn't just a regular workout, though. It was punishment from his dad for being a bad boy, and it hurt.

 _Man, did it hurt!_

Unable to help his feet from kicking, Nathan grabbed Dan's ankle to keep from throwing a hand back, which he knew would only anger his father more. He ordered himself to keep quiet and take the spanking he was getting like a man, but the little boy inside him insisted that he wasn't a man yet and told him it was okay to cry if he needed to. Nathan tried to ignore him but a whimper escaped before he could stifle himself and that was it for holding back. He let out a sob that led to another, and then he was bawling full on, crying not only for himself but also for the loss of Haley and for Lucas too, who was bedridden upstairs much sicker than Nathan realized. It killed Nathan to think that his selfish pursuits had played a hand in making his brother worse, and the continuous, burning slaps to his bottom seemed to punctuate his many, many missteps of the day before. Soon, he couldn't help but cry out and try to apologize.

 _"Da-ad! I'm sorry! Please, Daddy, I'm sorry! I never meant to hurt Luke!"_

On the verge of delivering ten more slaps then taking Nathan's shorts down so he could really teach him a lesson, Dan stopped. The repentance coming from the son across his lap was genuine, he could tell; the choked tears and the kicking were not ploys to get the spanking lessened in any way. Nathan didn't need any more punishment, and if Dan continued to spank him, he wouldn't be doing it for Nathan's benefit. He would only be doing it for himself, to release his own pent-up frustration.

Since Dan was determined not to be that kind of father anymore, he worked his jaw a moment then removed his arm from Nathan's back, which he'd been using to pin the teenager in place over his knees.

"Stand up and get in the corner," he ordered.

Nathan did. It hurt to walk and it was even more humiliating to be caught rubbing his sore butt and wiping a snotty nose in front of his dad at the age seventeen, but Nathan tried to console himself with the fact that there would be no more spankings for him after this one. Whatever he had to do, however good he had to be, this was it. He just hoped his parents didn't feel the need to mention his final punishment to his brother. He didn't want Lucas to ever know that he'd hurt him so badly their dad had felt compelled to hurt _him_ in return.

Truly, this had been the worst sixteen-hour period of his entire life.

Behind Nathan, Dan was thinking much the same thing. He gave the younger of his two boys another ten minutes to reflect on that fact before he unlocked the door then called him from the corner.

"Come here, son."

Nathan didn't want to, not if it meant facing his dad. He couldn't postpone this moment forever, though, so he turned around slowly but kept his eyes trained to the floor, feeling like child of six instead of a kid about to start his senior year in high school.

Dan waited until he was a foot away. "You got off easy," he said, "and it had nothing to do with your mother pleading your case. It was you who changed my mind, the remorse I heard when you were over my knee. Remember that, son."

Nathan didn't know what to say, so he stuck with the obvious. "Uh ... thanks, Dad ... can I go now?"

"Yes, but don't even think of leaving this house. You're grounded for the next week, and I want your keys and your driver's licence before lunch today, understood?"

Nathan wasn't surprised. He nodded and moved past Dan, but in the doorway, he paused and raised his eyes to meet his father's. "Dad."

"What?"

"I know I screwed up yesterday, but I meant what I said. I would never put Lucas in the hospital on purpose. He's your son and you love him, but you're not the only one ... I love him too. He's my brother."

"Yes, he is and you only have one, so how about you remember that the next time your little head tries to convince you to put him in danger over some girl."

Nathan wanted to argue that Haley wasn't just "some girl" but he refrained, understanding his father's underlying point. "Yes, sir."

"Good." Dan softened his tone as he nodded toward the door. "Now get upstairs and go relieve your mom. Lucas may not be awake just yet, but I'm sure he stills want your company."

Nathan was more than willing to do that. He left the office, went upstairs and headed straight for Luke's bedroom where an exhausted Deb was indeed grateful to get a break. Well aware of what had just happened in Dan's office between father and son, she gave Nathan a hug of sympathy, but then left him with instructions for Luke's care as long as his arm, desperate to get some sleep. Nathan didn't think he would need most of his mom's instructions, but he didn't dare tell her that, of course. He waved Deb out of the room, then piled some cushions on a chair to sit on while he stared at his patient and remembered how badly he used to treat his own brother.

Thoughts of Lucas pre-Ravens inevitably led to thoughts of "Tutor Girl", as Brooke used to call Haley once upon a time, so it wasn't long before Nathan got up to fetch the 300 page notebook hidden behind the night-table in his room. Once he returned to Luke's bedside, he settled himself comfortably on his cushions again, then flipped toward the back of his notebook where he still had a few unused sheets. Haley had never read any of these letters yet, but she would someday. Nathan was sure of it.

He uncapped his pen, glanced over at Lucas with a smirk, and then began to write.

 _"Guess what, Hales?_

 _I'm sitting here with your best friend right now (who's completely passed out by the way), and all I can think about is how totally uncool you two were before you met me. Okay, okay, it was really before Whitey recruited Luke to the team and changed all our lives, but still._

 _Hey, whatever happened to that ugly-ass poncho you used to wear and that weird green hat? I told you before those things were a pretty big eyesore, but I gotta say I still wish I had them right now because then I could sort of be close to you ..."_


End file.
